Bermuda Blue: I’m feeling the bumps on my ride to work

Biking it: The exercise feels good but the road
surfaces leave a lot of room for improvement.

I have finally taken the plunge and got on my pedal bike to cycle to work. It felt good.

What did not feel good was riding on our roads — boy, what a mess.

You don’t get to feel every rut and hole in a car, you are cushioned to a certain extent, as you are on a motorbike.

But, try riding a push bike.

The worst part is where a trench has been dug and then badly re-laid. What do you do?

Do you ride in the trench? Do you ride to its right and therefore in the middle of the road, or to its left, and therefore dangerously close to cars whose drivers think stopping at stop signs means aligning the back of their front wheels with the road markings?

The same applies to those cars coming out of driveways to enter the main road — they just drive right on until they can see. They don’t just nudge their way along, oh no — the brakes come on only when half the car is sticking out into the road.

Government has said it intends to resurface a certain number of miles of road a year, which is great.

But can they make sure there is liaison between the utility companies and themselves — because on the face of it there does not seem to be any — to make sure resurfacing work is done to the greatest possible extent where trenching has been done.

And can the utility companies, if they don’t already, liaise with each other to make sure as much work as possible, by as many people as possible, is done at the same time.

On another note — I was pleasantly surprised by the respect I was afforded by cars and bikes as they passed me. Thank you.

I can also seriously understand why motorists get annoyed when bike riders ride two or even three abreast. Move over guys, it is really anti-social.

One reader wrote: “Your article is spot on, honestly I thought I was the only one who felt the bumps.

“I drive what some may call a luxury car (Honda CRV) and trust me I can feel every bump (so annoying). My husband and kids have a good laugh at me because I’m always complaining about the state of our roads. With hope and prayer something will be done soon. Thank you again for sharing.”

And another reader emailed this:

“Hello, Jeremy, I enjoyed your article in the Sun re bicycling. I found that other traffic was pretty considerate the first time I rode from Hungry Bay to Collectors Hill as everything that went past me was on the other side of the mid-line completely, but on the way back I took it as a compliment that some at least were prepared to recognise my decreased wobbliness by sharing my side of the road. After 55 years of not riding bicycles on public roads — my bike having been stolen in Oxford — except for a brief spell which ceased after I rode to work one day and my receptionist handed me a bar of soap after my sweaty arrival at the office, saying ‘I think you will be needing this’!

“You didn’t mention being ‘doored’. They lose a few in Toronto from this every year. How can one avoid it? Perhaps we must just be a bit selfish and stick to the middle of your side of the road, especially in town when passing parked cars, and let passing vehicles wait their moment for a gap in the oncoming traffic. Most will.”